DAF dealers open Authorised Testing Facilities

Authorised Testing Facilities (ATFs) will have been opened at two DAF dealers by the end of the year with a further five scheduled to be operating by the end of February 2011.

Set up under VOSA’s Testing Transformation Programme, ATFs aim to make commercial vehicle annual testing more accessible and flexible for operators by providing it at more locations and at more convenient times.

All the new DAF dealer ATFs will have ‘Open Access’ status, which means that they will provide testing for all makes of vehicle.

P&K Truck Centre in Ellesmere Port in Cheshire has already gone live and began testing on 29th November. Initially they are running two testing days a week – Monday and Thursday – with seven hours of testing on each day starting at 7.00 am. If demand picks up they will consider either extending into the late afternoon/evening or adding further days.

P&K is approved for testing of all types of vehicle, including PSVs, and is particularly well equipped to handle trucks conforming to Petroleum Regulations and tank trailers. As well as providing testing facilities the company can carry out ADR and Safe Load Pass inspections. When possible these can be arranged to take place consecutively with the vehicle test to minimise downtime.

Imperial Commercials at Frome in Somerset start their ATF operation on 7th December, although they have operated as ‘Designated Premises’ since April 2010. Testing will take place on one day, with the first test starting at 8.00 am and the chosen day will vary according to bookings and operator needs.

Both companies have facilities to wash vehicles prior to test, as required by VOSA. They can also carry out pre-test preparation and tachograph calibration.

John McMenamin, Director of Retail Aftersales at DAF, said: “We are encouraging DAF dealers to seize this opportunity to improve their service offering to customers, even those with mixed marque fleets. When allied to DAFcheck, our dealers can offer a ‘one-stop-shop’ approach through which all six-weekly inspections and annual testing can be managed more efficiently, to ensure good compliance, and to be carried out more cost-effectively.

“From an operator’s point of view the new ATF arrangements should prove very beneficial. More local testing means less time spent travelling to and from the test centre, leading to a reduced environmental impact. If that centre is a DAF dealership, then operators will know that any additional services provided will be of a high quality and at a competitive price.”

For more information, visit daf.com.